Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

To many, the very question seems absurd. After all, the Confederacy had only a third of the population and one-eleventh of the industry of the North.Wasn't the South's defeat inevitable?

Not at all, as acclaimed military historian Bevin Alexander reveals in this provocative and counterintuitive new look at the Civil War. In fact, the South most definitely could have won the war, and Alexander documents exactly how a Confederate victory could have come about-and how close it came to happening.

Moving beyond fancifultheoretical conjectures to explore actual plans that Confederate generals proposed and the tactics ultimately adopted in the war's key battles, How the South Could Have Won the Civil War offerssurprising analysis on topics such as:

-How the Confederacy had its greatest chance to win the war just three months into the fighting-but blew it

-How theConfederacy's three most important leaders-President Jefferson Davis and Generals Robert E. Lee and Thomas Stonewall Jackson--clashed over how to fight thewar

-How the Civil War's decisive turning point came in a battle that the Rebel army never needed to fight

-How the Confederate army devised-but never fullyexploited-a way to negate the Union's huge advantages in manpower and weaponry

-How Abraham Lincoln and other Northern leaders understood the Union's true vulnerabilitybetter than the Confederacy's top leaders did

-How it is a myth that the Union army's accidental discovery of Lee's order of battle doomed the South's 1862Maryland campaign

-How the South failed to heed the important lessons of its 1863 victory at Chancellorsville

How the South Could Have Won the Civil War shows whythere is nothing inevitable about military victory, even for a state with overwhelming strength. Alexander provides a startling account of how a relatively small number of tactical and strategic mistakes cost the South thewar-and changed the course of history.

From the Hardcover edition.

Synopsis:

A military historian and author of How Wars Are Won looks at the costly errors that cost the South victory during the Civil War and outlines the tactical and strategic approaches the Confederacy should have used that could have changed the course of the war. Reprint. 15,000 first printing.

Synopsis:

Destroying conventional historical wisdom, acclaimed military historian Bevin Alexander reveals how the South most definitely could have defeated the North-and how close a Confederate victory came to happening. Alexander shows:

•How the Confederacy had its greatest chance to win the war just three months into the fighting-but blew it

• How the Confederacy’s three most important leaders- President Jefferson Davis and Generals Robert E. Lee and Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson– clashed over how to fight the war

• How the Confederate army devised–but never fully exploited–a way to negate the Union’s huge advantages in manpower and weaponry

• How Abraham Lincoln and other Northern leaders understood the Union’s vulnerability better than the Confederacy’s leaders did

How the South Could Have Won the Civil War provides a startling account of how a relatively small number of tactical and strategic mistakes cost the South the war and changed the course of history.

About the Author

BEVIN ALEXANDER is the author of nine books of military history, including How Hitler Could Have Won World War II, How Wars Are Won, How America Got It Right, and Lost Victories, which was named by the Civil War Book Review as one of the seventeen books that have most transformed Civil War scholarship. His battle studies of the Korean War, written during his decorated service as a combat historian, are stored in the National Archives in Washington, D.C. He lives in Bremo Bluff, Virginia.

Table of Contents

No victory is inevitable — "There stands Jackson like a stone wall" — A new kind of war — The Shenandoah Valley campaign — The Seven Days — The sweep behind Pope — Second Manassas — The lost order — Antietam — Fredericksburg — Chancellorsville — Gettysburg — Appomattox.

"Synopsis"
by Google,
A military historian and author of How Wars Are Won looks at the costly errors that cost the South victory during the Civil War and outlines the tactical and strategic approaches the Confederacy should have used that could have changed the course of the war. Reprint. 15,000 first printing.

"Synopsis"
by Google,
Destroying conventional historical wisdom, acclaimed military historian Bevin Alexander reveals how the South most definitely could have defeated the North-and how close a Confederate victory came to happening. Alexander shows:

•How the Confederacy had its greatest chance to win the war just three months into the fighting-but blew it

• How the Confederacy’s three most important leaders- President Jefferson Davis and Generals Robert E. Lee and Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson– clashed over how to fight the war

• How the Confederate army devised–but never fully exploited–a way to negate the Union’s huge advantages in manpower and weaponry

• How Abraham Lincoln and other Northern leaders understood the Union’s vulnerability better than the Confederacy’s leaders did

How the South Could Have Won the Civil War provides a startling account of how a relatively small number of tactical and strategic mistakes cost the South the war and changed the course of history.

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